Woman Awaits News of Husband Missing in Rasuwa Flood

Jaleshwor (Pipra). Indira Yadav, a resident of Mahottari, Pipra Rural Municipality-3, has started to become absent-minded and talk to herself every moment since her husband went missing in the Bhote Koshi river flood in Rasuwa on August 27. Her husband, Bikash Kumar Yadav, went missing in the Bhote Koshi flood in Rasuwa. Indira, who is 6 months pregnant, has a 2-year-old daughter in her lap. Her daughter has not been able to fully understand the importance of a father, and Indira is worried whether the child in her womb will ever see her father. Sometimes, in her delirium, she asks herself, 'Will my unborn child see its father?' Bikash's father Shambhunath, mother Binadevi, and brother Subash's eyes have not dried up. Whenever someone visits their home, they hope they have brought news of their son. On the day of the flood on August 27, Indira was also with her husband Bikash Kumar in Rasuwa. They had also taken their two-year-old daughter Vibhansi to Rasuwa. Bikash Kumar, who was working as a Civil Engineer at the Trishuli Three A Hydropower Project, was living in a quarter provided by the office in Rasuwa. Since he had accommodation facilities, he had also brought his wife and daughter along. Around 6:30 AM on the 27th, Bikash Kumar went to duty. Before leaving the room, he woke up Indira and told her to lock the door and sleep as he was going to the office. 'After that, I woke up, fed milk to my daughter, and fell asleep. I woke up at 7:30 AM and started my daily household chores,' Indira recounted the day's events. 'The distance from his office to the quarter is 10 minutes. Around 9 AM, the guard uncle outside the quarter told me that a big flood was coming from above, so you should go to a higher hill, and I ran out with my daughter in my arms.' According to Indira, despite her pregnancy, she hurried to the hill. She then said that she could not contact her husband when she called him. 'He was online until 9:20 AM. I called him 2-3 minutes later, but I couldn't connect,' Indira said. She mentioned that she had also been to the place where he worked inside the tunnel of the project before and said that there were two or three floors inside. 'That's why I expected him to be safe,' she said. 'I waited until evening, but he didn't come. Then in the evening, I went down myself to look, but there was no trace of him.' According to Indira, she and her daughter were rescued and brought to Kathmandu by the Nepali Army. She said that after staying at the camp for two days, she came home with the help of her brother. Indira complains that even though the government knew from the beginning that the flood had caused great loss of life and property, it did not take steps for rescue accordingly. 'The government knew – the incident was horrific. The government also knew well that Nepal does not have the technology to rescue people trapped inside the tunnel,' she said. 'Despite this, why was the request for help from abroad delayed? Why were foreign agencies, who were ready to help by sending a team of experts, stopped from coming for the rescue?' Indira says that they are now facing the consequences of the government's inability to make the right decision at that time. Her despair and worry are increasing as there is still no news of her husband. 'It's been so many days, and there's no trace,' Indira said. 'Still, I pray to God – may my vermilion not be wiped off, an innocent child who hasn't seen the world is growing in my womb, and the day my other child calls me 'Baba' has not yet come. In such a situation, can God give me such a cruel test?' Since the incident, her house has been visited by neighbors, relatives, and journalists. Neighbors come and console her, saying, 'Bikash will be fine, he will return soon.' Bikash's brother Subash said, 'It has been 12 days since the incident. There are governments at three levels, but no government has even consoled us.' Subash complained that while the central government was working relatively for relief and rescue, the provincial and local governments had not even come to console the affected families. 'They used to say it was the government of our home and courtyard, but they were useless when we were in pain,' he said. Bikash's father, Shambhunath, is a retired teacher. He was called by the District Administration Office on Sunday and gave a DNA sample. He retired 8 years ago and is currently making a living by raising 3 cows, half a dozen goats, and ducks at home. Remembering his missing son, Shambhunath said, 'He was very brilliant in his studies. He never fell below second place, he was always first. Now it feels like the main pillar of my house has fallen.' He complained that due to the Nepal government's thinking that the tunnel was safe, rescue efforts were not given timely attention, and the condition of his son remains unknown. Mother Binadevi had undergone surgery for uterine and hernia problems just a month ago. Since her son went missing in the flood, she talks deliriously, asking anyone who comes to bring her son back. The police have confirmed that 178 people from the Madhesh Province are missing in the tragic flood in Bhote Koshi, and 3 have died. According to the Madhesh Province Police Office, among those missing in the same incident, 2 from Parsa, 2 from Bara, 5 from Rautahat, 3 from Sarlahi, 7 from Mahottari, 7 from Dhanusha, and 2 from Saptari have been contacted, but the condition of others remains unknown to date.